The Causes Of Drinking And Driving?

Many individuals engage in drinking alcohol in the United States. Often times this drinking is followed up by driving to various destinations. Drinking and driving is an epidemic that affects not only the drunk driver, but the lives of individuals that are lost due to car accidents, as well as their families. Although drinking and driving causes such devastation, individuals continue to engage in drinking and driving every day; therefore interventions and deterrents must be implemented in an effort to prevent individuals from drinking and driving.
Drinking and driving is defined as operating a motor vehicle while over the legal alcohol limit that the law defines as being safe. In the United States drinking and driving has impacted over 56,543 individuals (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA, 1999). Every 33 minutes someone is involved in an alcohol related crash (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA, 1999). Studies also indicate that every 140 miles traveled in the United States is driven by someone with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 or higher (NHTSA, 2005). Each state varies in the laws that are established in an effort to prevent …show more content…
This proactive measure will ensure that individuals that have been drinking do not get behind the wheel and drive.
The ignition interlock device is a device that is breath analyzed. It was created to prevent individuals that have been drinking from starting up and driving their vehicle (Fulkerson, 2003). One issue with this device is that they are costly and monitoring individuals that are required to use them is difficult (DeYoung, 2002). This device also does not serve as a way to rehabilitate drinking and driving offenders. Offenders that are not monitored are also more likely to not comply with court directed orders than individuals that are highly monitored (Hedlund &Mc Cartt,